Out of 13 cruises, I have only had to take one motion sickness pill and it worked great. It wasn't the cruise ship that made me sick, it was riding on a ferry from Cozumel to Playa del Carmen. Even though I sometimes get motion sickness on land, I have never gotten it on a cruiseship. I quess I've been lucky.

I have never had an issue with the ship, but I had horrible, morning sickness with my last pregnancy, I was hospitalized 3 differnt times and was so sick I passed out in a store. THat said the bands were the best. They worked better than Zofran that by doctor gave me. I am all for the bands since they work so well and they will not have any side effects. Have a great cruise

I take a Bonine a couple of hours before boarding and once a day after. I have no idea if I would get seasick or not but I do not take any chances! I wouldn't take a cruise without Bonine. One of my tablemates was very sick in very rough seas the first night out and the ship doctor gave her other pills and they also sold her a wristband but neither worked for her and she was quite ill and I gave her one of my boxes of Bonine and she was fine by the next morning and the seas were still very high.

I use Bonine and think it works great. I tried the bands but they didn't work for me at all (although I wonder if I had them on the pressure points). I take a Bonine the morning I am boarding and then one at night before I go to bed and I'm fine throughout the cruise (unless we start to run into really rough weather).

The wrist bands for sure. I've never had a problem with sea sickness, but my DH gets severely sick. On our first cruise, we both wore the patch, just to be safe. Hated the side effects from that. I ended up taking mine off and have never used anything since. Had tablemates with the wrist bands on. Bought them on the ship for DH (at twice the price of Wal-Mart), and he has never had a problem since. He even uses them to fly. It's the only anti-nausea thing we tell people about. It works!!!

Livvysgram

Carnival Sensation
Enchantment of the Seas
Brilliance of the Seas
Radiance of the Seas
Carnival Glory
Celebrity Zenith
Sovereign of the Seas
Freedom of the Seas

The lovely Mrs. Jones (Vita) would never sail without Bonine. She takes one every morning, whether whe needs it or not, and has NEVER had a problem,,,,even in very rough seas. She is extremely sensitive to motion sickness, so if it works for her,,,it works.

Ken

P.S. Bonine is "Meclizine", and can be purchased over the counter, if you buy a full bottle (100). If you sail a lot, or are in need of a lot of this medication, it's worth it to buy a bottle. (Price isn't much different than two blister packages of Bonine.)

Ask your doctor for a Scopalamine Patch perscription. I have NEVER been sick on a cruise when I used one. The only minor side effect is dry mouth and slightly blurry vision when reading. My husband and I would NEVER cruise without the patch. You change it every 3 days. Don't waste your money on anything else.

Read a study that said the bands worked simply by placebo-effect.
Meclizine is somewhat effective. Also ginger has been shown to work.
I would never use scopalamine. Way too many side effects. Used to be used as anesthesia pre-op. Many kids had severe troubles. I have heard that Hal offers green apples to eat. Never heard of this before. Luckily I hardly ever get sick, but that ferry ride from Cozumel to Playa del Carma had a lot of people retching!

I always use Dramamine, but I never really needed it on the cruise. I kept myself occupied, and it wasn't bad at all. But let me tell you, NEVER take a boat in Cozumel- that almost killed me. I was 11 and my brother was 10, he was throwing up everywhere They have us some alchohol swabs and told us to sniff them. I was questioning that because it would kill brain cells. Luckily, I was fine with a bit of dramamine and some Mexican cola, on the ride back.

We both take bonine and are fine. I would not recommend getting the patch and then also taking bonine or any other med. You are combining similar med's and that could cause problems. Since you have to go to your doctor for the patch, please at least ask him about adding the bonine. Better to be safe.
And the wrist bands are very uncomfortable for me. Too much pressure, I guess....and I'm too sensitive!
Marty

I usually take one Dramamine or Bonine -Non Drowsy formula about an hour before sailing and that's it for the cruise. I haven't been seasick yet, thank goodness, but it makes my mouth dry. Hubby's doctor refused to prescribe him the patch (he already had one from another dr.)--he said there were problems associated with it--I don't remember what. But sure enough on our next cruise, the wife of a couple we befriended had on a patch and couldn't figure out why she was so sick. She took off the patch and a day or so later she was better.

One of the best, cheapest, and most effective item that people seem to have the best results with is simple ginger tablets.

The TV show Myth Busters did an episode on various methods/pills and they found ginger tablets worked best for them.

Never thought much about it, but I do remember when my wife's OB/GYN recommended ginger ale when she felt nauseous when she was pregnant and it worked very well, so there's something to it for those suffering from seasickness. Plus, it doesn't have the side affects as Dramamine or those patches behind the ear.